The object then will be to make our independence a blessing. To do this we must secure our union on solid foundations; an herculean task and to effect which mountains of prejudice must be leveled! It requires all the virtue and all the abilities of the Country. ... We know each others sentiments, our views are the same: we have fought side by side to make America free, let us hand in hand struggle to make her happy.~~Alexander Hamilton to John Laurens, August 15, 1782

"Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom,Let not the mighty man glory in his might,Nor let the rich man glory in his riches;But let him who glories glory in this,That he understands and knows Me,That I am the LORD, exercising lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth.For in these I delight," says the LORD. Jeremiah 9:23-24

"Heaven is My throne,And earth is My footstool.Where is the house that you will build Me?And where is the place of My rest?For all those things My hand has made,And all those things exist,"Says the LORD. "But on this one will I look:On him who is poor and of a contrite spirit,And who trembles at My word." Isaiah 66:1-2

(Sorry that this post is a day late, Jean. :( But, better late than never, I suppose!).

Let a man so consider us, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God. Moreover it is required in stewards that one be found faithful. But with me it is a very small thing that I should be judged by you or by a human court. In fact, I do not even judge myself. For I know of nothing against myself, yet I am not justified by this; but He who judges me is the Lord. Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord comes, who will both bring to light the hidden things of darkness and reveal the counsels of the hearts. Then each one’s praise will come from God.

Notice here that Paul does NOT say that he does not examine himself; in fact, he penned the following instruction in his second Corinthian epistle under the inspiration of the Spirit:

Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Do you not know yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you are disqualified. (2 Corinthians 13:5)

Notice that Paul addressed the above to Christians, not to unbelievers. He is telling them to examine themselves, to see if they are in The Faith, if Jesus Christ is in them. If the answer is "yes," then all we need to do is keep our eyes on Jesus. We are His stewards commissioned to do His service; therefore, He is the one who decides if our service is sufficient. If we need to amend, He has His ways of letting us know.

If we are continually "judging ourselves," we begin to think and live self-centeredly (what? that's not a word?). We take our eyes of Jesus, and we lose sight of our goal -- staying focused on Him, believing what He says even when we don't see it with our eyes, and doing what He says. Like Peter, we become concerned about the wind and waves around us, and we foolishly worry about our ability to walk on stormy waters; when in fact, it is through Christ that we walk on water.

We must keep our eyes on Him. We should not seek the approval of others, or even of ourselves. We should seek HIS. And the Scriptures make it clear what is necessary to be pleasing in His sight.

He has shown you, O man, what is good; And what does the LORD require of you But to do justly, To love mercy, And to walk humbly with your God? Micah 6:8

The Word for Wednesday meme has moved to Jean's blog, "Yeah, Right ..." Please visit to see who else has participated!

With the signs of the end of the age coming closer and closer at hand, this Scripture from Hebrews 11 has been recurring to me, and for this week, I intended to post it. It just so happens that my family and I read this passage together during our devotions for this Wednesday morning:

By faith he [Abraham] dwelt in the land of promise as in a foreign country, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise; for he waited for the city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God. ... These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off were assured of them, embraced them and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. For those who say such things declare plainly that they seek a homeland. And truly if they had called to mind that country from which they had come out, they would have had opportunity to return. But now they desire a better, that is, a heavenly country. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for He has prepared a city for them.Hebrews 11:9,13-16

Having this on my mind, I often find myself humming the last stanza of the British patriotic hymn, "I Vow to Thee My Country." The first two stanzas sing the praises of the author's country (which would be England), and I think that it's taken a bit too far. However, the last verse speaks of the Heavenly Country, the one which far surpasses any of the pitiful glories of our earthly habitation:

And there's another country I've heard of long ago,Most great to them that love it, most dear to them that know;We may not count her armies, we may not see her King;Her fortress is a faithful heart, her pride is suffering;And soul by soul, and silently, her shining bounds increase,And her ways are ways of gentleness,And all her paths are PEACE.

The melody to this hymn comes from a portion of Gustav Holst's rousing composition, "Jupiter" from his work, "The Planet Suite." You can play or download it here, courtesy of FreePlayMusic.com. At 3 minutes and 15 seconds into the music is the melody to this verse. Please listen, and sing along!

About the Ranter

A genuine New York patriot, with a personality just as eccentric as the name, who publicizes writings just as unique as the name, and who is as devoted to the cause of liberty as the Hercules Mulligan of 1776.